The Missing Piece
by XSuicuneX
Summary: All can be changed with one act. AU


**Disclaimer; I don't own Tales of Symphonia, I'm shamelessly stealing my sister's game for my own amusement.**

**This one is a tad shorter then my smutty one.**

* * *

><p>The swordsman fell to the ground, tears in his eyes as he gazed at his useless hands. He had failed. His elven friend and teacher stood behind him, the elder shaking her head in apologetic sorrow.<p>

"Colette." He squeezed his eyes shut, tears brimming at their edges. "I'm sorry."

The angel stood by and watched the boy's heart break, his own heart breaking in the process. He couldn't show his pain however, so he hid it behind a mask.

He had no choice but to leave his son to his pain.

"Sometimes Lloyd," he said "All we can do is live, even when all we've lived for is gone."

* * *

><p>It didn't happen in a flashy way. No fire or brimstone accompanied its disappearance The tower was simply gone. Only those obsessed with the tower itself could mark the exact moment of it's vanishing. And even then they hadn't been aware of it at first.<p>

Word spread slowly, then faster as more and more people began to notice. Widespread panic ensued, with crowds filing into the church, hoping the goddess would bestow her blessing upon them once more.

When no answer lay in sight, they turned to the one man who had been tasked with the salvation of the world. They begged him to do his duty, and the church refused to let him say 'no.'

For the Chosen of Tethe'alla, it was his worst nightmare come to life.

* * *

><p>The land of Sylvarant flourished, the Desians fell to the courage of human warriors for no longer would they fall to half-elven tyranny. They enslaved the Desians, and any other half-elves they could find. They would not be oppressed again.<p>

Palmacosta erected Neil as their first King, and he in turn erected a monument to the one who made all prosperity in Sylvarant possible. He made a statue of the Chosen of Sylvarant.

No one knew what had happened to the heroes who traveled with the Chosen on her pilgrimage They vanished within the tower, never to be heard from again.

Though, there were rumors of a swordsman, clad in red, wandering around the land of Kharlan, mourning a song that would never be sung, and wings of soft pink.

* * *

><p>He never made it to the first seal.<p>

The ninja of Mizuho had been selected to accompany the Chosen on his quest to stop disaster from happening. She had jumped at the chance, because perhaps this way she could make up for all the suffering she had once unwittingly bestowed upon her village. Also, while the man infuriated her at times, in the end, she called the Chosen a friend.

But she failed her people once again. The half-elves took the chance to revolt, and so they took out their rage on the most exalted human they knew. They had come out of no where, caught them off guard. They never had a chance, and she should have been able to stop it.

She failed the world.

She failed Mizuho.

And she had failed her friend.

* * *

><p>On one side of the divided world, chaos and panic rules the land. The crops fail, and the monarchy falls. Their land begins to die.<p>

Amidst it all a girl lives locked in her own body, out living all around her and unable to care. The gem at her neck keeping her true self locked in a dream until it consumes her very essence completely.

A man rots in a cell, put there by his own will. He knows this is what he deserves, though he can not understand what had caused his love's gruesome transformation. He tells no one of his story, so they make up their own tales. He does not bother to correct them.

On the other side of the divided world, the people know peace at last, the small villages are prospering and mana fills the land.

However, unbeknownst to them, this prosperity is bittersweet.

A swordsman wanders around the tower, without the will to live beyond a determination to keep his tale alive, even if no one will ever hear or believe. And the inside of the tower is painted red with the blood of elves who were never true elves to begin with.

* * *

><p>Yuan awoke from his dream in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. He didn't know what the visions meant, and he never had put much stock to premonitions before, but the dream had been so damn <em>vivid <em>that he wasn't sure how wise it would be to ignore it.

He was interrupted in his thoughts as a knock sounded at his door. After composing himself he opened it to reveal Botta standing in his doorway.

"What is it?" He asked, his voice grouchy.

Botta blinked and opted not to make a comment, clearly Yuan wasn't in the best of moods. "I was talking to the men, and they were wondering...when you wanted to..ah...get the plan in motion? You've been forming the Renegades for several years now and-"

Yuan silence him with a glare. "The plan will start when I see fit to start it. We can't ruin everything by acting immaturely."

Botta lowered his eyes. "Understood Sir."

Yuan nodded curtly. "Good. Now go back to what you were doing. I need time to think."

Botta promptly turned to do as he was told, and Yuan was left to contemplate his 'visions' in peace. It bothered him, he still wasn't certain if now was the right time to strike or not. However, Kratos' son was getting rather close to Yggdrasil favored Chosen...

He hadn't been sure, but the dream, no, nightmare seemed to confirm it for him. He would act. Perhaps Kratos' son would play a key role in his plans after all...assuming he hadn't inherited any of his father's more difficult habits.

In any case, it was time to end Mithos' twisted system. No more disasters, no more bittersweet temporary victories, no more senseless, useless deaths.

And most importantly of all, no more Martel. She would finally be able to rest.

As she should've long ago.

* * *

><p><strong>Tales of Symphonia has been eating my brain. This is pretty much a 'what-if' scenario that Yuan dreamed up. What if he hadn't started to act as he had? What would have happened in the end? Not just on Sylvarant's side, as obviously Colette would've died and they probably would have completed the regeneration journey (And made Lloyd all sad-face) but on the Tethe'alla's side too. If Yuan hadn't acted, Sheena would've never made the trip to Sylvarant, the tower would've poofed, and Zelos would probably have had to go on that lovely little journey, and most likely died in the process. If not during said journey, then probably by some angry mob or something.<strong>

**Presea and Regal likely wouldn't have had happy endings either. Not fun times.**

**Luckily for us, Yuan did act, so it's all good~**

**This one isn't too good either, but review if you so wish.**

**'Cune out.**


End file.
